*Scroll down for English*
Stori am yr aliens gwyrdd oedd isio bod yn binc.
Story about the green aliens who wanted to be pink.
Gwerth addysgiadol/educational value: ◉◉◉◉◉
Negeseuon positif/positive messages: ◉◉◉◉◉
Themau trist,anodd/upsetting, tough themes: ◉◎◎◎◎
Trais, ofn/violence, scary: ◎◎◎◎◎
Iaith gref/language: ◎◎◎◎◎
Rhyw/sex: ◎◎◎◎◎
Hiwmor/humour: ◎◎◎◎◎
Her darllen/reading difficulty: ◉◉◎◎◎
Dyfarniad/Rating: ★★★★★
Lawrlwythwch gopi PDF o'r stori YMA:
Download a PDF copy of the story here:
Click link below.
Wrth i’r newyddion am y digwyddiadau erchyll ein cyrraedd o’r Amerig am George Floyd, y dyn du a gafodd ei ladd gan heddwas gwyn, efallai fod hyn yn amser da i dynnu eich sylw at lyfr addas i blant am ragfarn a hiliaeth. Mae’r protestiadau sy’n digwydd ar draws y byd fel rhan o’r ymgyrch #blacklivesmatter yn dangos fod llawer o waith eto i’w wneud i gael gwared â hiliaeth, rhagfarn ac anghydraddoldeb. Dwi ond yn gobeithio y bydd y genhedlaeth newydd o blant ifanc yn llawer mwy goddefgar o’i gilydd na fuon ni. Cofiwch, tydi plant ddim yn cael eu geni â rhagfarn - mae o’n cael ei ddysgu.
Yn yr un modd ag y mae’n bosib dysgu a magu casineb, mae hi hefyd yn bosib lledaenu negeseuon positif am gariad a heddwch. Dyna pam dwi wrth fy modd gyda llyfrau sy’n dathlu ein tebygrwydd a’n gwahaniaethau; sy’n ein dysgu i barchu a charu ein gilydd. Mae ’na dipyn go lew o lyfrau newydd wedi eu cyhoeddi’n ddiweddar sy’n gwneud jest y peth, ond, mae ’na un ‘clasur’ o 1990 sy’n enghraifft dda iawn.
Tybed os oes ’na blant o’r 90au yn cofio ‘Y Bobol Fach Wyrdd’ gan Mai Parri? Dwi wedi colli cownt o sawl tro y clywais i’r stori mewn gwasanaethau yn yr ysgol gynradd ac mae’r neges wedi aros gyda mi ers hynny. Ydi, mae’r llyfr wedi dyddio mymryn ond mae’r neges mor bwysig ag erioed.
Cyfres o lyfrau i ddarllenwyr ifanc oedd ‘Prosiect 3D’ (Denu, Difyrru, Darllen) a gomisiynwyd ar ôl i Bwyllgor Cymru dderbyn grant gan y Swyddfa Gymreig bryd hynny, i greu adnoddau newydd. Athrawon greodd y llyfrau, a wir i chi, mi wnaethon nhw job mor dda, mae’r llyfrau i’w gweld hyd heddiw yn ein hysgolion ac yn dal i gael defnydd cyson.
[Ocê, ella fod hyn fwy i wneud efo cyllidebau ysgolion wedi cael eu torri cymaint nad oes ganddyn nhw lawer o bres i brynu llyfrau newydd, ond ta waeth, wna i ddim dechrau mwydro am y politics, neu yma fyddwn ni.]
Mae’n dod â gwên i fy wyneb pan dw i’n gweld y llyfrau yma’n dal i gael eu defnyddio yn ein hysgolion (fatha Bili Broga) ac yn amlwg maen nhw’n rai o safon os ydyn nhw wedi para cyhyd.
Stori yw hon am aliens bach gwyrdd sy’n dod o outer-space i chwilio am help Meri a’i thaid am fod rhai ohonynt wedi laru ar fod yn wyrdd. Mae ambell un yn newid lliw eu croen er mwyn bod yn binc. Ar ôl ‘pincio’, maen nhw’n troi eu cefnau ar eu cymdogion gwyrdd ac yn meddwl eu bod nhw’n well. Yna, fe gawn dudalen sy’n reit shocking yn fy marn i gan eu bod nhw wedi codi ffens weiren bigog fawr i wahanu’r ddwy gymdeithas, gan ein hatgoffa o wal Donald Trump neu'r Berlin Wall. Y peth mwyaf brawychus am yr arwyddion ‘lle ni’ a ‘lle chi’ wrth gwrs, yw bod segregation o’i fath i gyd wedi digwydd go iawn yn y gorffennol. Dwi’n siŵr y bydd plant yn gallu gweld pam fod hyn mor ofnadwy o gas, annheg ac annerbyniol.
Mae’r bobl binc yn meddwl mai nhw yw’r gorau, tan i rywbeth wenwyno’r tir, y pridd a’u gwneud yn sâl. Maen nhw’n newynu cyn i’r bobl wyrdd ddod i’w helpu, gofalu amdanynt, a’u croesawu’n ôl i’w cymdeithas werdd er gwaetha’r ffaith fod y bobl binc wedi eu trin nhw’n annheg. Erbyn y diwedd, mae’r cyn-bincwyr wedi dysgu eu gwers, yn sylweddoli fod bywyd yn well pan mae pawb yn cefnogi ei gilydd, ac mae pawb yn cyd-fyw’n ddedwydd. Y dudalen olaf yw’r gorau gan ei bod yn crynhoi neges bwysig iawn iawn.
Ella fod ’na rai ohonom ni’n fawr, rhai’n fach, rhai’n ddu, rhai’n wyn, rhai’n dal, rhai’n fyr, ond rydym ni i gyd yn bobl.
Dyma stori wych i’w rhannu gyda phlant ifanc gan ei bod yn trafod testun dwys mewn ffordd ddealladwy ac yn codi amryw o bwyntiau trafod.
Ydi hi’n bryd i’w hail gyhoeddi?
As our newsfeeds are filled with the terrible events from the USA about George Floyd, a black man killed by a white policeman, perhaps this is an appropriate time to draw your attention to a child-friendly book about prejudice, racism and class. The protests that are taking place across the globe as part of the #blacklivesmatter campaign show that there is still much work to be done to eradicate racism, prejudice and inequality. I only hope that the new generation of young children will be more tolerant of each other than our generation. Remember, children are not born with prejudice – it is learned.
In the same way that it is possible to teach and preach hatred, it is also possible to spread positive messages about love and peace. That's why I love books that celebrate our similarities and differences; that teach us to love and respect each other. There have been a lot of great new books published recently that do just that, but, today, I want to talk about a ‘classic’ from 1990 which is a good example.
I wonder if there are 90s children out there who remember ‘Y Bobl Fach Wyrdd’ by Mai Parri [The Little Green People] I’ve lost count of the times that I heard the story in assemblies in Primary School but obviously the message has stayed with me since. Yes, you could say the book is slightly out of date by now, but on the whole it still stands up pretty well - the message is as important now as it ever was.
'Project 3D' (attracting, entertaining, reading) was a series of books for young readers that were commissioned after the Welsh Committee received a grant from what was then known as the Welsh Office, to create new resources. Teachers created the books, and honestly, they did such a good job, the books can still be found today in our schools and are still used regularly.
[Ok, maybe the fact that they are still being used is more to do with the fact that school budgets have been cut so much, they don’t have money to buy the new books, but anyway, I won't go into the politics, or we’ll be here awhile…]
It does bring a smile to my face when I see these books still being used and cherished (such as Bili Broga) and they were obviously of a good standard if they have lasted for so long.
This is a story about small green aliens from outer-space who come to look for help from Meri and her grandfather because some of them are sick of being green. Some of them change the colour of their skin in order to be pink. After 'pinking up', they turn their backs on their green neighbours and start to think that they are better. We then get what is in my view, a rather shocking page which shows they have erected a large barbed wire fence to separate the two societies. (reminding us somewhat of Donald Trump's wall or the Berlin Wall). The scariest thing about the ‘your place’ and ‘our place’ signs is that this kind of segregation is all based on real events from history. I’m sure that children will be able to see why this is so terribly nasty, unfair and unacceptable.
The pink people think they are the best, until something poisons the land and soil, causing them to become sick. They are starving until the green people come to their rescue, taking care and nurturing them back to health. They welcome the separatists back to green society despite the ill treatment they received. By the end, the former pinksters have learned their lesson, and have come to realise that life is better when everyone supports each other; co-habitating happily. The last page is my favourite as it summarises the book’s key message.
Some of us may be big, others small, some black, some white, some tall, some short, BUT we are ALL people.
This is a great story to read with young children as it discusses what is a complicated subject in an understandable way and does raise many valuable discussion opportunities.
Could it do with being re-published?
Gwasg/publisher: Gwasg Taf Cyf.
Rhyddhawyd/released: 1990
Ar gael/available: Allan o brint / out of print - library loan only